In 2025, fire departments serving Columbus County responded to 431 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $75K property loss. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as High.
Building fires lead by count. Top five categories make up about 60% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips.
2,737 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 493 | |
| 2022 | 625 | |
| 2023 | 551 | |
| 2024 | 637 | |
| 2025 | 431 |
For the 82 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Columbus County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 95% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $75,000 | Whiteville | Building fires | Significant |
| 2 | $30,000 | Riegelwood | Building fires | Significant |
| 3 | $25,000 | Whiteville | Building fires | Significant |
| 4 | $15,000 | Whiteville | Building fires | Significant |
| 5 | $15,000 | Whiteville | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 6 | $12,000 | Whiteville | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 7 | $10,000 | Whiteville | Building fires | Significant |
| 8 | $8,500 | WHITEVILLE | Building fires | Significant |
| 9 | $5,000 | Sandyfield | Building fires | Significant |
| 10 | $5,000 | Whiteville | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 37047.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| Whiteville | 4,761 | View › |
| Tabor City | 3,709 | View › |
| Chadbourn | 1,548 | View › |
| Lake Waccamaw | 1,462 | View › |
| Brunswick | 1,233 | View › |
| Riegelwood | 658 | View › |
| Sandyfield | 625 | View › |
| Bolton | 581 | View › |
| Fair Bluff | 437 | View › |
| Cerro Gordo | 352 | View › |
| Evergreen | 300 | View › |
| Boardman | 238 | View › |
13 departments report from this county.
Top 10 fire perimeters by acres burned (state-scoped fallback while we build out per-county polygons).
| # | Name | Year | Agency | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GREAT LAKES | 2023 | USFS | 32,155 |
| 2 | Whipping Creek Road | 2016 | PRI | 15,456 |
| 3 | COLLETT RIDGE | 2023 | USFS | 5,506 |
| 4 | St Mary's | 2008 | NPS | 4,565 |
| 5 | Carolina Bay | 2009 | USFS | 2,659 |
| 6 | Big Ditch | 2021 | FWS | 1,486 |
| 7 | HANCOCK CREEK | 2022 | USFS | 1,177 |
| 8 | BUCK MTN | 2002 | NPS | 1,124 |
| 9 | NCMCR-FY19-RX-1.1.2.b | 2019 | FWS | 1,080 |
| 10 | VAF220152 | 2022 | NPS | 1,079 |
County-level NFIRS aggregates for 2025, plus 5-year totals across 2021–2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Wildfire risk score (0–100) and Expected Annual Loss come from FEMA's National Risk Index. Drought class is the most recent USDM classification (D0 = abnormally dry through D4 = exceptional drought). Historical fire perimeters are sourced from the NIFC InterAgency Fire Perimeter History.